50 startups that will boom in 2018, according to VCs

2018 is almost upon us and so it is once again time to predict which startups will take the tech industry by storm next year.

Who better to ask than the startup experts, the VCs that watch the industry, guide the startups, hear their pitches, and invest in them?

We reached out to a number of top VCs and asked them which startups will boom in 2018. We invited participation from investors from a variety of backgrounds and investing philosophies. This includes some of the top VCs in the Valley (Accel, Andreessen Horowitz, Battery Ventures, Bessemer, Greylock Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Sequoia).

We included VCs of note who specialize in seed and early rounds (8VC, Bloomberg Beta, BBG Ventures — which backs startups with at least one female founder.) We also asked some top VCs from the startup nation Israel (JVP, OurCrowd) and VCs that have been known for picking hits (like IVP's Somash Dash).

We asked them to name a company they've backed that's on track to have a great 2018. After all, they believed in those companies so much they invested. But we also asked them to name another startup they think is cool that they don't have any financial interest in.

As startup lovers, they gave us this list chock full of amazing up-and-comers creating tech for businesses, gamers, personalized health, robots, high-tech money, new forms of super computers, and even outer space.

Nauto: An artificially intelligent dashcam for vehicles

What it does: Nauto makes a cloud-based, artificially intelligent, networked camera for vehicles. It helps to identify dangers to drivers, provides feedback at the end of trips, and also analyzes the cause of accidents to reduce false liability claims.

Why it's hot: "Soon, driving will become a networked and highly collaborative activity — cars on the road will benefit from what other cars have learned. Nauto is rethinking transportation safety by using AI, and founder Stefan [Heck] is seeking to completely redefine the transport grid," says Hoffman.

Heck is a 20-year transportation veteran who is a research fellow and teacher at Stanford, and a member of the Energy Transformation Collaborative (ETC).

Rigetti Computing: A startup taking on quantum computing

What it does: Rigetti Computing is developing technology to help usher in a new kind of powerful computer known as quantum computing.

Why it's hot: “Quantum computing is going to be a very large industry and the promise of a large quantum computer is incredibly powerful. Companies like Microsoft, Google and Intel have experimented with quantum computers, but Rigetti Computing is taking a unique approach. The startup is building a business from scratch to build a quantum computing chip," says Hoffman.

Pindrop: Stopping voice fraudsters

What it does: Pindrop is used by call centers to analyzes a person's voice and detect fraud. It can even determine if a voice is real or generated by a computer.

Why it's hot: "Voice as a way to interact with computer systems is becoming more and more pervasive, whether we’re talking to Alexa at home or interacting with an automated system online," Casado says, adding that voice fraud has been a huge hole in security until now.

Relativity Space: 3D printing rockets

What it does: Relativity Space is an automated rocket building factory making low-cost rockets to bring down the cost of transporting things into space.

Why it's hot: "Relativity Space 3D prints rockets ships! No kidding, it’s amazing," Casado says. "And they’ve managed to build the world's largest 3D printer with relatively little funding. I’ve been tracking the micro-satellite trend, in which small satellites are being designed and deployed for a fraction of the cost of traditional satellites. There is a similar disruption going on in the rocket arena, and I think Relativity is an absolute highlight of that."

Reflektive: Ongoing employee performance feedback

What it does:Reflektive offers performance review software that is integrated into other productivity apps like Outlook, Slack, Gmail.

Why it's hot: "Enables managers to have a real-time checklist of performance goals and objectives for each of their direct reports. For employees it gives them a running record," says Dash. "The company is poised to breakout in 2018."

MoveWith: World-class fitness classes on your phone

What it does: MoveWith is a personal fitness app that delivers audio workouts from well-known coaches. It includes classes for your body (running/cycling/Barre), mind (Yoga) and soul (meditation/talks).

Zume Pizza: Robots making pizza

What it does: Uses robotics in the kitchen to make the pizza and automation on the delivery truck to cook the pizza so it arrives at your door piping hot. Seen as a harbinger of a new type of smart food delivery industry.

Why it's hot: "Robots making pizza? How is that not cool?! Memes aside, the team has an ultimate goal to make fresh, locally sourced food at prices that are affordable to all by reimagining the way fast food is made and delivered," Kim says.

Earny: Automatic refunds

What it does: Earny is a service that seeks out refunds automatically in the event of a price drop through both retailer and credit card price protection.

Why it's hot: "Earny helps users take advantage of price protection policies offered by major stores and credit card issuers that often go unclaimed due to the headaches of submitting adjustment claims," says Jones.

Ripple: Using blockchain to make payments globally

What it does: Ripple is a network that uses blockchain, the technology behind Bitcoin, to allow banks and payments processors to securely send money directly to one another globally, with a middleman. Former AOL and Yahoo exec Brad Garlinghouse is CEO.

Why it's hot: "We’re seeing a sharp rise in blockchain-enabled startups, and with good reason. They’re convenient, they’re secure — and while early adopters have already noticed — I forecast that the rest of society will follow," Jones says.

Signal Sciences: Helping developers and security folks collaborate

What it does: Signal Sciences helps protect websites and apps from hackers by helping developers and security teams collaborate better.

Why it's hot: "The team comes from Etsy, where they experienced the pain points first-hand and decided to build something to solve it. Signal Sciences identifies which parts of applications are being targeted and helps remediate security issues," says Rosin. "They are one of the emerging enterprise software businesses in Los Angeles and definitely one to watch in 2018."

Hudl: Pro-level analysis for athletes at every level

What it does: Performance analysis software for athletes and coaches at every level. Athletes upload video for analysis, highlight reels, and more.

Why it's hot: "Hudl was bootstrapped in Lincoln, Nebraska, by former college roommates who built the early version of the product while working as graduate assistants for the Huskers football team. Today, Hudl's platform is used by more than 6 million athletes and 150,000 teams across 30 sports, from little league to elite organizations like Manchester United, the New England Patriots, and Team USA basketball," says Clements.

Hudl has become so popular it's set to launch an original show called Hudl Contenders as part of Facebook's new video production studio.

JustWorks: Better HR for small businesses

What it does: Small business HR software like payroll, benefits, compliance, and other HR tasks.

Why it's hot: "JustWorks is a smart, modern spin on the traditional PEO [professional employer organization] business model. It pools small businesses together to give them the buying power of a large enterprise while removing back-office complexity and focusing on the types of benefits that matter to a younger workforce," says Clements.

Deepmap: Special maps for self-driving cars

What it does: One day soon, all of our cars will drive themselves, but first, they need to know where they're going. Deepmap offers high-definition maps for autonomous vehicles and uses onboard sense to "see" the road and predict what's around the corner.

Why it's hot: "Autonomous vehicles won't operate with just any mapping system — they need a high-fidelity and multi-dimensional understanding of their location if they're to safely navigate," Natarajan says.

Plus, Deepmap is founded by a team that hails from Google Earth, Google Maps, Apple Maps, and Baidu Maps.

Remix: Better public transit

What it does: Remix helps city planners design better transit systems. They can plan routes and immediately understand the cost or demographic impact of a proposed change.

Why it's hot: "Remix is building a planning platform for cities to visualize and plan their transit systems. It's a great example of a tech company having a real civic impact — and building a thriving and sustainable business while doing so," says Natarajan.

What it does:Smash.gg is software that helps eSports organizers plan and execute their tournaments and events.

Why it's hot: eSports has become "a $500 million industry with viewership that has surpassed major sporting events like the Superbowl and NBA championship, and billions of players globally," Kumar says. Yet organizers were putting on events with spreadsheets, pen and paper. Smash.gg gives these organizers better software tools for this rapidly growing industry.

Dia&Co: Fashion for real women

What it does: Dia&Co is an online shopper service selling clothing and accessories to women who wear plus-sized apparel.

Why it's hot: "Dia&Co may be one of the best exemplifies of the next-generation of enduring consumer brands; they've paired fanatical execution with a deep understanding of their customers' pain points," says Kumar. "They were able to hone in on tremendous market demand that's been traditionally underserved by both legacy retail businesses and conventional startups."

Narvar: Ecommerce software for after the sale

What it does: Narvar provides software for tracking shipping and return options for over 400 top commerce sites, including 50% of the Internet Retailer 100 and 250 million customers per year.

Reason: "As Amazon has raised the game for online commerce, traditional retailers must evolve their customer communication strategy to win," O'Malley says. "This conversation is moving from phone to email and now to messaging. Narvar is leading the way in this increasingly important channel for communication."

Molekule: Cleaning up pollution with nanotechnology

That silver cylinder is Molekule's pollutant destroying air purifier.Molekule

What it does: Molekule sells an air purifier using nanotechnology that breaks down and wipes out pollutants on a molecular level.

Why it's hot: "Unlike traditional systems that attempt to block unhealthy particles, Molekule actually destroys those particles. As air quality deteriorates, tens of millions of people now suffer from asthma or severe allergies. Staying inside isn’t a great solution as indoor air is actually 5x more polluted than outdoor. Molekule is the first company to have a cure versus just a pain killer," O'Malley says.

Handshake: A LinkedIn for college students

What it does: Handshake is a recruiting and career network for college students and young alumni.

Why it's hot: “Handshake’s growth in their university market has been phenomenal. They are now the recruiting platform of record to more than 450 colleges, 6 millions students, and hundreds of thousands of employers," Feng says.

Roblox: A gaming world by kids for kids

What it does: Roblox is an online game for kids that attracts over 64 million monthly active players. Kids use it to create 3D worlds and play in them together.

Why it's hot: "A few years ago, if you were to research what were the most popular video games for kids, you’d inevitably come across 'Minecraft.' Today when you do that same research, you’ll inevitably come across 'Roblox.' It’s not just amazingly popular, but it’s gotten to that point off purely organic growth, which is even more impressive," says Feng.

"'Roblox' is the largest user-generated online gaming platform with over 29 million games created by users and over 64 million active players from across the globe," says Elman.

Lola: A cool brand for feminine products

What it does: LOLA is a subscription service for 100% organic cotton feminine products delivered right to the customer's door.

Why it's hot: "Whoever thought that a cool brand could be built around feminine care products? Jordana Kier and Alex Friedman have done just that with LOLA," says Lyne. "By combining product transparency and convenience with straight talk about periods, they've won a growing base of enthusiasts and inspired a slew of instagram hashtags."

What it does:Function of Beauty uses machine algorithms to make personalized shampoo for each customer, based on their preferences and hair type.

Why it's hot: "Function of Beauty emerged from Y combinator as a promising beautytech concept: unique shampoo and conditioner formulations for every customer's hair. But it's the execution that turned it into a hugely successful launch," says Lyne. "Every bottle carries the customer's name — because with a possible 12B combinations, this one is truly yours. Wish we were on their cap table."

Citizen: Warning ordinary people of 911 situations

What it does: Citizen is an app that shows you 911 incidents in your neighborhood in realtime. It was formerly known as "Vigilante," but after a popular but controversial start, it revamped itself so as not to imply it was trying to prevent crime.

Why it's hot: "Today, there's information flying through the air that has a direct impact on your safety, but very few people have the ability to access it. Citizen helps you stay safe with instant notifications and live broadcasts of incidents reported to 911. It's one of the few apps that I think should be running on everyone's phone," says Vernal.

Aurora Innovation: Self-driving car geniuses set out on their own

Aurora Innovation is using an Audi Q7, pictured here, to collect dataAurora Innovation

What it does: Aurora Innovation is the secretive startup founded by autonomous vehicle veterans from Google (Chris Urmson), Tesla (Sterling Anderson), and Uber (Drew Bagnell) that received a permit in August to test self-driving cars on California roads.

Why it's hot: "Autonomous vehicles could be the biggest economic shift since the Internet. Today, transportation is about 10% of GDP and has a direct impact on another 50% of GDP," says Vernal. "There are a number of talented teams working on this space, but Chris and the team at Aurora stand out as one of the very best."

Knotel: Taking on WeWork

What it does: Knotel is a WeWorks competitor offering co-working spaces that prides itself on its flexibility with leases. It's been growing and now controls more than 500,000 square feet in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and San Francisco.

Why it's hot: "Knotel delivers a new experience for business leaders looking for on-demand headquarters and flexible leases," says Bahat. “The corporate real estate industry hasn’t innovated at the same pace as today’s startups, and that’s an issue when it comes to creating environments people actually want to work in.”

What it does: The company helps large employers like Chipotle, Taco Bell, and DaVita offer college education and tuition reimbursement to employees.

Why it's hot: "They help the world’s largest employers offer college education and tuition reimbursement as a work benefit to the 64 million working-age adults who don’t have a college degree," says Deeter.

"We talk about where the onus of responsibility lies in preparing Americans for future workplaces, and Guild is an example of an organization that's stepped up," says Bahat.

Carta: Transparent stock options

What it does: Carta is an SEC-registered transfer agent that manages equity in private companies. It digitizes any paper stock certificates and stock options, warrants, and derivatives so that people can easily track who owns what at a startup.

Why it's hot: "Carta simplifies equity ownership for all constituents — a previously highly complex and not well-understood area which is no longer opaque and painful," says Kurzwell.

Wag: The dog-walking app

Why it's hot: "On first blush it may seem silly, but the ~40 million US households with lovable canines also have a twice daily problem that if not addressed leads to a very smelly situation. Owners can’t always get home for a walk and that’s where Wag comes in," says Bennet.

uBiome: Building the world's largest microbes database

What it does: uBiome is working on the world's largest microbiome database. Microbiome are the bacteria living in our bodies, many of them are the friendly ones that help keep us healthy.

uBiome uses its database to offer insurance-reimbursed medical tests through doctors that detect and measure bacteria and viruses. The tests include SmartGut for the belly, and SmartJane for the vagina.

Why it's hot: uBiome's tests offer patients information "not available in any test on the market," says Scotti, adding that the new field of Microbiome science has "revolutionary" implications for health, nutrition, cosmetics, and agriculture, and that uBiome is led by some of "the top scientists in the industry."

Celmatix: Personalized medical insights for women

What it does: Celmatix uses big data and genomics to give women personalized recommendations about their reproductive health. In January it launched the first-ever genetic screen for markers that may impede fertility.

ServiceTitan: Software for home service pros

What it does: ServiceTitan provides mobile, cloud-based software for home service businesses including plumbing, HVAC, and electrical companies.

Why it's hot: "Companies like ServiceTitan, targeting workers, often blue-collar, who do their jobs outside corporate offices, will lead the next large wave in software innovation," says Brown. That's because such workers make up 60% of the workforce but don't yet use the latest office and collaboration tech, he adds.

Crew: The app for hourly workers

What it does: Crew serves the millions of people in the hourly workforce that do not have a corporate email address.

Why it's hot: "Crew provides a messaging and communications platform for mobile workers, typically in often ‘forgotten’ industries like construction, retail, field services, hospitality, and many more," says Brown, adding that it's like Slack or WhatsApp but "with special features like scheduling and shift swapping."

Vayyar: Turning smartphones into 3D-imaging devices

VayyarVayyar

Company name: Vayyar

VC: Scott Tobin at Battery Ventures

Relationship: Investor

Funding: $34 million

What it does: Vayyar makes 3D-imaging sensors that can "see through" objects, liquids, and materials. Its tech is used in breast cancer screenings, detecting water leakage, food safety monitoring, and more.

Why it's hot: "Vayyar sensors can make every cellphone or tablet into a full 3D imaging system. Its sensors quickly and easily look into objects, analyze the makeup of materials, and track changes and movements," says Tobin.

Omni: Store and rent out your unused stuff

What it does: Omni provides a storage room for your stuff, and lets you rent it out to others, or find other items you'd like to rent.

Why it's hot: "There are a number of companies working on storage solutions, but Omni is the first to layer on your social graph. You can borrow and rent out items through their marketplace. I’ve personally stored over 100 items," says Banister.

Zebra Medical Vision: AI medical scans in the cloud

What it does: Zebra applies artificial intelligence to medical image scanning, helping to search each scan for conditions that may have otherwise gone unnoticed. And it charges a flat fee of $1 per scan.

Coda: Creating a new kind of document

What it does: Coda was founded by a former YouTube and Microsoft alum, Shishir Mehrotra, and former Googler Alex Deneui. They are creating a new type of document that combines the flexibility of a word document with the power of a spreadsheet and the functions of an app.

Why it's hot: "There has been an explosion of productivity tools, but we are still doing the majority of our work on the same technology built two decades ago. In this networked age, we need tools that are collaborative and open – Coda is just that, allowing teams to build a doc as powerful as an app," says Lily.

Sigma Computing: Beautiful charts. No programming

John Lily at Greylock Not invested: Sigma ComputingSigma

Company name: Sigma Computing

VC: John Lily at Greylock

Relationship: No relation. VC just thinks it's cool.

Funding: Not available.

What it does: Sigma allows people to tap into their biggest databases hosted in the cloud and easily conduct analysis, create charts, and graph data — all without any programming involved.

Why it's hot: "It’s no surprise that lots of data is moving into the cloud. It’s a huge trend, moving quickly, and it’ll mean we need new approaches to visualizing and manipulating that data. The product from Sigma is fantastic and traction looks very promising," says Lily.

Discord: How gamers talk

Discord CEO Jason CitronDiscord

Company name:Discord

VC: Josh Elman at Greylock and Cyan Banister at Founder’s Fund

Relationship: Elman is an investor. Banister is not; she just thinks it's cool.

What it does: Discord is an all-in-one voice and text chat for gamers that's free, secure, and works on both the desktop and phone.

Why it's hot: "I haven't seen a product grow this quickly in a very long time," says Elman. "It has more than 45 million registered users who send about 200 million messages daily. Every day, 9 million people are using Discord, adding 1.1 million new users every week. Every gamer knows about Discord.”

"Discord is voice and video chat for gamers. If you game at all, this is how you communicate with your friends. No more Skype, no more hassle," says Banister.

Gladly: A smarter customer service software

What it does: Gladly is customer service software that can recognize the same customer over voice, email, SMS, chat, and social media.

Why it's hot: "Gladly threads together phone conversations, email, SMS, and Facebook Messenger so agents have a full history of the customer. This year, Gladly nabbed JetBlue as a customer, with the goal to improve one of the most annoying parts of traveling — airline customer service," says Chen.

Why it's hot: "Kryon offers a truly unique solution that makes the interaction between the human and virtual workforces seamless and efficient. Enterprise automation is a huge market for the taking, and Kryon Systems is primed to flourish in 2018," says Tzruya.

Pymetrics: Using neuroscience to hire people and avoid unconscious bias

What it does: Founded by a Harvard and MIT PhD, Pymetrics uses games based on neuroscience to help companies recruit, hire, and retain talent, removing unconscious bias from the process.

Why it's hot: "With enterprises globally waking up to the fact that inclusive environments deliver stronger results, Pymetrics is using AI to level the playing field for the widest possible range of candidates," says Lyne.

Accompany: Delivering rich, real-time intel on every person you'll encounter at work

What it does: Accompany, founded by former leader of Google Analytics Amy Chang, scours public info and compiles profiles on over 300 million people. It then uses AI to give you info on who's most important to you at that moment.

Why it's hot: "I'm obsessed with Accompany. It has totally changed my workday by delivering rich, real-time intel on every person I'll see that day," says Lyne. "I no longer spend cab rides madly googling the person I'm about to meet! I WISH I was an investor, but I'm relegated to superfan."